This is probably incoherent, so sorry if it’s gibberish. It’s good to write it out, though.

My mom, dad, and I have had a rough few days with my dad’s delirium/dementia. He has been getting up every 5-10 minutes, and we have to coax him back down because he is so unsteady. He gets very combative and confused, forgetting who my mother and I are a lot of the time. He keeps getting up without knowing why, and I keep trying to tell him he doesn’t have to worry about anything. The doctors believe it is caused my an electrolyte imbalance. We switched around the medication a bit and it didn’t help. We aren’t getting much sleep. I try to hold down the fort so my mom can nap/eat/shower/pee, but he starts wailing her name. It’s like we have a newborn from Hell.

(Respite care is an option, but my mom is steadfastly against it, despite my consul.)

My dad picked up a cigar habit during the past few years. He still indulged during his treatment, until the dementia got too bad a few days ago.

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Mom and I were watching TV during one of his mini-naps and we saw an anti-tobacco commercial. Then it dawned on Mom that he was having nicotine withdrawals. I called his nurse and within 4 hours some nicotine patches were delivered. Dad went to sleep and has been sleeping for 45 minutes, which seems like a miracle at this point. Thanks, nicotine!